Nothing seems to bother the Florida Panthers.
Set to host the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night, the Panthers are without two of the NHL’s biggest stars due to injuries — Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk.
Even so, the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions Panthers have made no excuses. In its season opener on Tuesday, Florida overcame an early deficit and defeated the visiting Chicago Blackhawks 3-2.
Two of Florida’s goals were from bottom-six forwards A.J. Greer and Jesper Boqvist, who combined for just 18 goals last season.
However, that’s typical of the Panthers under coach Paul Maurice. Every player on the roster competes hard and can skate, which is why the team is able to succeed even while stars are sidelined.
Greer said the key is remaining humble.
“It would be easy to take your foot off the gas and get complacent,” Greer said in a postgame interview with ESPN. “But we know what the recipe is, and it’s just a matter of putting in those ingredients.
“We’re relying on our new guys to put some spice on the team.”
Those new guys include 37-year-old defenseman Jeff Petry, 25-year-old goalie Daniil Tarasov and 27-year-old forwards Luke Kunin and Noah Gregor.
Cole Schwindt, 24, is new to the Panthers this season but also played for Florida in three games as a rookie in 2021-22.
As Cup-winning teams often do, the Panthers have veteran holdovers to carry the team, including goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Gustav Forsling and forwards Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Reinhart.
Meanwhile, the Flyers under new coach Rick Tocchet are set to make their season debut after missing the playoffs the past five seasons.
Tocchet, 61, played 18 years in the NHL, including 11 with the Flyers. This is his fourth stop as a head coach, previously working for Tampa Bay, Arizona and Vancouver, where he won the Jack Adams Award as the league’s best coach in 2024.
Defenseman Travis Sanheim said he and his teammates feel fortunate to have Tocchet at the helm.
“Him being back in Philly and picking us, it excites us a team,” Sanheim said. “He’s a step ahead. He already knows the organization, the city and the fans, and that’s going to benefit us.”
However, the Flyers clearly have some issues. Their .888 save percentage 5-on-5 last season was the worst since the NHL began keeping that statistic in 2009-10.
New goalie Dan Vladar, signed to a two-year contract in July, had an .898 save percentage in 30 games for Calgary last season. He closed strong, going 6-1-1 with a .927 save percentage in his final eight games.
Holdover Samuel Ersson, who had an .883 save percentage last season, figures to split starts with Vladar. Ersson last season had a .904 save percentage with at least two days of rest.
Offensively, forward Owen Tippett — Florida’s first-round pick in 2017 — has scored at least 20 goals in each of his past three seasons with Philadelphia.
Tippett, 26, is also one of just six NHL players to post at least 75 goals, 350 hits and 700 shots on goal over the past three seasons.
–Field Level Media
